For the past century our education system has been very
traditional with books, blackboard and teachers. Recent technological
advancements have been affecting classroom learning with the implementation of
smart board, blackboard and Coursera (online learning) that are causing the
educational method to change. All these new interactive learning tools that are
available to students nowadays, are they here to do good or bad?
Looking from the positive side, online
learning in fact increases the efficiency of learning and it can actually
encourage students to access learning materials easily. Students can also
download lecture notes, slides and tips online without consulting lecturers and this form of learning can happen anywhere anytime. Parents could also check on students
progress and homework to ensure that the students are doing well in school.
Besides, moving the classroom online
could also broaden the reach of these education to those that could not afford
to attend to universities but are keen learners. Coursera (a new
online education platform) partners with Professors from Universities to provide
classes online with lower fees. Coursera now offers 859 courses from 115
Universities for only $50/month.
Despite the positive impact of
technologies in learning nowadays we could not discount the possibility that
traditional classroom learning will ever be replaced. The fundamental on
teaching and learning is through two way communication between the students
and lecturer but with online learning it would be overly flexible and that may cause
students to miss classes or have less initiative to learn rendering the education invaluable.
With the pros and cons of technological
impact on education it would be wise to think twice before revamping the
education methods.
What do you think? Would you want your
child to learn online or in a classroom?
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